One of Jacksonville’s newest affordable housing projects had to take a detour, but three foundations are planned to be poured in December near Edison Avenue and King Street.
After a few months of preliminary discussions, followed by negotiations and then planning, City Council in August approved legislation to transfer three parcels of surplus property to Kairos International Development Inc. for affordable housing sites.
The lots, in the Eastside neighborhood near Springfield, are included on the Affordable Housing Property Inventory List. It’s a collection of about 430 properties the city took over when the previous owners failed to pay the ad valorem taxes.
Most are valued at less than $5,000 but the total assessed value of the parcels is nearly $3.8 million.
The lots are available for donation to private entities that agree to build housing for low-income residents.
The detour came when Kairos tried to take ownership of the property and discovered doing that would involve going to court.
“Those properties didn’t work,” said council member Bill Gulliford, who introduced the transfer legislation.
“All three of those properties didn’t have clear title and it could have taken one or two years to clear the titles. A lot of the properties we can donate have significant issues,” Gulliford said.
He then introduced legislation that would repeal the original conveyance and instead transfer a 0.3-acre parcel along Broward Street in West Jacksonville, north of Interstate 10 near Edison Avenue and King Street.
The bill was enacted Oct. 11 and three days later, Kairos recorded a deed with the Duval County Clerk of Courts.
The market value of the land is $9,345 according to the Duval County Property Appraiser’s website.
Kairos President Alex Itkin said he plans to divide the property into three lots and place prefabricated homes on the lots.
The homes will be manufactured by Iowa-based Energy Panel Structures Inc. and then shipped to Jacksonville.
The homes will be assembled on the sites and finished by local contractors, Itkin said.
He’s planning to pour the foundations within about 30 days and could have the homes ready for occupancy by the end of February.
It’s a pilot program that Itkin hopes will lead to the development of more homes for low-income residents in partnership with the city.
“I can buy lots, but the homes would be much more affordable if the city gives me the lots,” he said.
Council member Garrett Dennis represents District 9 where the homes will be built.
“I’m optimistic,” he said about the pilot program.
“If it works, we’ll have a model and plenty of people in my district — and all over the county — need affordable housing,” said Dennis. “You have to start somewhere and Northwest Jacksonville and District 9 is a good place to start.”
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